The hype of "just switching" to self-organization I am quite critical of. After all, there are no shortcuts to transformation. Self-organization is not an end but can be a means. Therefore, the main question is, what is it a means for?
Self-directed teams; let's start at the beginning, shall we?
Back in the 1990s you saw different movements around initially self-direction. Just like several years ago. Why it wasn't successful? It is not a quick win and certainly not a simple structural change. Self-direction is a complete transformation of collaboration within teams. After all, tasks are best divided but in the absence of a leader, who actually bears the final responsibility?
Self-organizing or co-management is another angle that is more likely to be successful. You start looking for your right to exist together. Focusing on the collective goal and paying attention to how everyone can contribute to this from their talents and drives is what binds people to an organization.
Self-managing teams vs self-organizing teams, what exactly is the difference?
Helpful to dive into the definitions for a moment. You could say that the biggest difference between self-organization and self-management is: Who sets the frameworks (and thus the goal). In self-organization, the manager sets the goal, in cooperation with the team. In self-management, the team does this itself and thus determines its own direction. Nevertheless, the two terms self-management and self-organization are often used interchangeably, assuming they are the same principle.
What is the role of a leader in self-direction?
Self-direction requires talent-focused and effective leadership in order to build a solid team foundation that enables the transition to self-directed teams, for example. Why is the role of the leader still important after all:
- To make self-directed teams successful, the primary process, type of employee and environment are strong determinants of the success of self-directed teams. Not all team members react in the same way to introducing self-direction.
- Forming teams leads to an informal hierarchy anyway, and with large differences in influence, the role of the leader is ultimately crucial.
In any case, before teams are ready for self-management or self-organization, there is still a lot of work to be done. So start at the beginning: basic team development. That means looking (again) at the cooperation within the team. What is the common goal? Is the team using all the talents present to their best advantage? Does the team recognize the different communication patterns? Do team members give feedback to each other appropriately? Is the team strength known?
Professional level
At Team Supporter, we prefer to talk about different levels at which teams can function. And every team deserves to get the best out of its team potential. We know better than anyone how to do that and what knobs to turn to take a team to the next level.
Self-organizing or self-managing teams? We guide teams to a professional level. A level where team members make optimal use of each other's IQ and EQ and are masterful in their mutual communication.
When a team achieves this professional level it automatically leads to:
- Happy employees
- Fast and better processes
- Happy customers!
So don't wait any longer to activate your own Team Supporter and work together for more job happiness and great results!
